Recently I needed to use my little Lincoln Weld-Pak 100 for a small job at a friends house. Prior to welding I installed a new 2 pound roll of flux core wire because the roll that was on it has sat around for a long time, and I didn't want to have to deal with nasty wire. Shortly after I started to weld the machine quit feeding wire. I opened up the side and everything looked ok. I then checked the tightness of the roll and discovered that the nylon wing nut that holds the roll on the spindle was really tight, so I loosened it up and all worked well for about 3 minutes of welding, then it stopped feeding again. When I checked the wire roll it had tightened up again, and the wing nut was super tight. I then backed the wing nut off so there was about 1/16" gap between the nut and the roll of wire. After about 5 minutes of welding it had tightened up again and stopped feeding.

I then removed to roll of wire and made sure I had installed the large aluminum backing washer on the spindle. It was there, and does not show any obvious damage. I then put the old roll of wire back on the welder and had the same problem with the nylon wing nut tightening up until the roll stopped turning. I did not have any problem with this roll when I used it before. Anybody ever encounter this problem. I am sure all the wire roll retaining hardware is present and undamaged. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated..........thanks

Tom Zachman

05-29-2005, 08:18 AM

My first thought is the roll might be "inside-out" thereby turning the wrong way and tighting the tension nut. Seems unlikely; but possible.

cutter

05-29-2005, 10:17 AM

Pat, it sounds to me like, and I am going to guess - that you installed the new roll upside down so that the wire is now feeding clockwise & over the top instead of counterclockwise and from underneath? That's pretty easy to do with a 1 or 2 pound roll.

Pat

05-29-2005, 08:21 PM

Tom and Cutter,

Thanks for replying. The wire is going in a clockwise direction and feeding from the bottom. There is a chart on the door showing the correct way to load the wire, so everything looks ok as far as that goes.

Tom,

What do you mean by inside-out? I did notice that the label on the new roll is facing towards the inside when the roll is properly mounted to feed clockwise from the bottom. On the old roll the roll label faces out when properly installed. Could this be what you mean by inside out, or were you thinking along the same line as Cutter?. Now I am really scratching my head because both rolls tightened up the wing nut whereas to my recollection the old roll never gave me any problems until I removed it to put a new roll on, then put it back on using it as a test. We just got home from a cook out at my brother in-laws, so I am stuffed and tired But tomorrow I will get out my other little Lincoln and check it for all the correct parts, then see if it also has a problem feeding these 2 rolls of wire. I will test it while I am trying to concoct something to put around my wifes Finch feeder that will allow the birds to get at the sack, but will not let the squirrel get his head in far enough to chew the feed bag to pieces. Anybody know how wide a squirrel's head is? This information will save me from driving the roads looking for a post mortem candidate to get some measurements from................thanks

7018

05-29-2005, 08:48 PM

Tom and Cutter,

Thanks for replying. The wire is going in a clockwise direction and feeding from the bottom. There is a chart on the door showing the correct way to load the wire, so everything looks ok as far as that goes.

Tom,

What do you mean by inside-out? I did notice that the label on the new roll is facing towards the inside when the roll is properly mounted to feed clockwise from the bottom. On the old roll the roll label faces out when properly installed. Could this be what you mean by inside out, or were you thinking along the same line as Cutter?. Now I am really scratching my head because both rolls tightened up the wing nut whereas to my recollection the old roll never gave me any problems until I removed it to put a new roll on, then put it back on using it as a test. We just got home from a cook out at my brother in-laws, so I am stuffed and tired But tomorrow I will get out my other little Lincoln and check it for all the correct parts, then see if it also has a problem feeding these 2 rolls of wire. I will test it while I am trying to concoct something to put around my wifes Finch feeder that will allow the birds to get at the sack, but will not let the squirrel get his head in far enough to chew the feed bag to pieces. Anybody know how wide a squirrel's head is? This information will save me from driving the roads looking for a post mortem candidate to get some measurements from................thanks
Doesn't the retaining nylon wing nut also turn clockwise ??????

Pat

05-29-2005, 09:21 PM

7018,

The retaining nylon wing nut does turn clockwise when you turn it while putting it on to retain the roll of wire. When I pull the trigger the roll of wire turns, but the nut stays in the position you left it (or I should say it is supposed to stay where you left it). The more I think about this little problem the more confused I get. Dose anybody know if the nut should or should not rotate while the roll of wire is turning? Like I stated earlier, I think all the wire roll mounting hardware is present, but I may be wrong. I have 2 of these Weld-Pak 100 machines, but not 1 owners manual. A manual would help me verify that I have all the needed parts. I went to Lincolns website looking for a manual with an exploded view of the wire/drive roll system, but was unable to find anything. They do have the manual in the obsolete section, but nothing in that manual that would be of use..thanks

tackit

05-29-2005, 10:08 PM

sound like threads have worn down. Perhaps just a drop of blue lock tight on the threads will stop the problem and still allow for the wing nut to turn on and off without a problem or maybe get a metal nut the same size and drill and thread it for a set screw.

Pat....
Any chance of you posting pictures looking at the wire reel setup?

Pat

05-30-2005, 03:00 AM

Marco,

Thanks for the Weld-Pak 100 manual link. On page 16 it shows the roll spindle assembly. According to this I am supposed to have a spacer that I don't believe I ever received when I bought it new. I will check the other W.P. 100 that I got at a garage sale, but I do not believe that unit has a spacer either.

W.D.,

I will attempt to snap a photo later today, and if the part-time Sony Cybershot will cooperate, I will get the photo posted as soon as possible. That camera has been a thorn in my side ever since we purchased it. Sent it in for warranty work on the little screen, and when it came back it had a new problem. When pressing the power button to turn it on, sometimes it acts as if there are no batteries in it, and with a little luck and a couple of slaps it will fire up. My sister has a twin to that camera and she has never had a problem with hers...............hmmm.

Kelly Aitken

05-30-2005, 07:31 AM

I'm only guessing here, but check the stud that the wing nut is screwing on to. It could be actually screwing itself into the backing plate.